Tron founder Justin Sun has taken legal action against World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency firm with ties to the family of former US President Donald Trump, alleging that the company wrongfully froze his $WLFI token holdings and made false representations. The lawsuit, which was filed on Tuesday, claims that World Liberty's leadership engaged in an 'illegal scheme to seize property' by freezing Sun's tokens, which he had purchased after being approached by the company in 2024.
According to the lawsuit, Sun invested $45 million in $WLFI tokens due to the project's claims of promoting decentralized finance, as well as its association with the Trump family. A spokesperson for World Liberty Financial declined to comment on the lawsuit. The filing alleges that World Liberty asked Sun to continue investing in the project, including a request to mint the company's USD1 stablecoin, but became hostile towards him when he refused.
The lawsuit claims that World Liberty made false representations about the economic rights and liberties associated with purchasing $WLFI tokens, including statements about token holder rights and the freedom to transact. Sun's suit also alleges that World Liberty, despite presenting itself as a decentralized finance company, has centralized control over its tokens.
The complaint claims that World Liberty modified the smart contract governing $WLFI in August 2025 to add a 'blacklisting' function, allowing the company to freeze tokens in specific wallets without disclosing this change to investors. The lawsuit argues that this modification was used to freeze Sun's tokens, which served the dual purpose of pressuring him to mint $200 million of the company's USD1 stablecoin and manipulating the market price of $WLFI tokens.
The complaint also alleges that World Liberty's ability to issue, freeze, and reassign tokens may raise regulatory questions and potentially qualify the company as a money transmitter under US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network rules. Other allegations in the complaint include threats made by World Liberty's co-founder, Chase Herro, against Sun and his businesses.
Herro allegedly threatened to burn Sun's $WLFI tokens and report him to US authorities over allegedly inadequate know-your-customer documentation. Portions of the lawsuit have been redacted, with Sun's team giving World Liberty the opportunity to decide whether these provisions should remain sealed.
In a social media post, Sun stated that he had attempted to resolve the situation in good faith and wanted to be treated the same as other early investors who received tokens. He also expressed opposition to a new governance proposal published by World Liberty on April 15.